When her youngest son joined the Rifles, Vandy Massey set herself a challenge. . . to paint and sell 1,000 watercolour images, with all the proceeds going to the charity Care for Casualties. Six months and 335 paintings later, it’s safe to say the local artist has been rather busy. LYDIA FALLON finds out more.

Stepping into Vandy Massey’s Whittlesford home, it’s not long before you realise this is most definitely an artist’s residence. It’s a visual feast: my eyes dart happily from one watercolour to the next, taking in dusty red sunsets, fields of daffodils and brightly-coloured kingfishers.

Vandy leads me through to her paint-splattered studio and I note the cold mug of tea and portable heater in the corner; it appears she’s been spending rather a lot of time here recently. “It’s been busy, very busy,” she laughs.

And the cause of this hectic schedule? Running with Brushes; Vandy’s exciting new fundraising project.

Early last year, Vandy’s youngest son Nicholas joined the Rifles Regiment. During his year of training at Sandhurst, Vandy and her husband Marc became increasingly aware of the dedication it takes to be a member of Britain’s armed forces, and decided they wanted to give something back.

“I was doing Saffron Walden Open Studios when this crazy idea came into my head,” explains Vandy, describing the inspiration behind Running with Brushes. “I thought ‘What if I could paint for charity?’ But I didn’t want to just do 10 paintings or something; I wanted a pretty chunky challenge. A thousand seemed like a good chunky number.

“I don’t do small challenges,” she laughs.

And so Running with Brushes emerged. Vandy set herself the task of painting and selling 1,000 4x6 inch watercolour images, in aid of Care for Casualties, a charity which offers support to those regimental families affected by the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and which is very close to her heart.

“This is a tangible way I can support my son’s career,” she explains, showing me some of her most recent paintings. “No parent wants their child to be in danger and he has chosen a career which will, inevitably, put him in danger, but that’s part of the deal. This is a way I can offer my support to him.”

Each painting costs £15 plus postage and packaging, and 100 per cent of the money raised will go straight to the charity. Every single image is elegantly presented, beautifully painted, and completely unique; you certainly won’t find any prints here. “It’s a really nice opportunity for someone to get a painting they wouldn’t be able to get otherwise,” says Vandy. “We’re not doing prints, every single one of our paintings is unique, every painting has been perceived and painted by an artist and you put your best into every single one.”

Running with Brushes started out as Vandy’s own personal challenge, but it has quickly captured other people’s imaginations too, and artists from far and wide have been keen to get involved. “There’s been a fantastic reaction from the art community and it’s now become a wonderful collaboration,” Vandy says. “We’ve had paintings sent from the UK, Belgium, France, South Africa, Australia and the Philippines, and I’ve never had to ask an artist to get involved, they’ve all approached me.

“One lady got in touch to say what she loved about the fact she’s involved in this is that instead of feeling helpless, she felt like she was now doing something which actually made a difference.”

Running with Brushes has so far raised £2,000 for Care for Casualties, and Vandy hopes the total will grow to £5,000 by the end of the year. With an incredibly busy day job in data analysis, Vandy has to snatch a few hours with her paintbrush during the evenings and weekends, and admits time is a very precious commodity (“I need 48 hour days,” she chuckles).

Despite her hectic schedule, the artist admits she has found the challenge incredibly rewarding. “It’s given me little sleep,” Vandy laughs. “But I’m thrilled we have been as successful as we have in raising £2,000. I’ve met so many artists through it too, which has been great, and I love the community aspect of it.”

And what does Vandy’s son Nicholas think of the challenge? Bearing in mind he was the inspiration behind it all. “His reaction was something like ‘That’s cool,’” she laughs. “But then he did say ‘This thing has really grown arms and legs, hasn’t it?’

“I said ‘Yep, it sure has!’”

:: For more information about Running with Brushes, to purchase a painting or, if you’re an artist and want to get involved, visit the website at runningwithbrushes.co.uk.